By Trixie Yap, Siyi Liu and Sam Li
SINGAPORE/BEIJING, Dec 31 (Reuters) - China has started allocating naphtha import quotas to key importers in the first batch of allowances for 2026 and the volumes are expected to be steady from this year, three trade sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.
State-owned Sinopec 600028.SS and CNOOC 600938.SS were allotted 2.52 million metric tons (22.4 million barrels) and 2.11 million metric tons, according to two of the people.
The allocation for Ningbo Zhongjin Petrochemical, owned by Rongsheng Petrochemical 002493.SZ, was 750,000 tons, one of the two sources added.
The sources declined to be named as they were not authorised to speak publicly.
The Ministry of Commerce, Sinopec, CNOOC and Rongsheng Petrochemical did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Beijing controls imports of naphtha, a key feedstock for petrochemical production, via a quota system, similar to its crude and refined products exports.
Foreign cracker operators Exxon Mobil XOM.N and BASF BASFn.DE are also expected to be given significant volumes in the first batch, the sources said, although the volumes were not immediately known.
On November 5, BASF said it was in the process of starting up its new 1-million-ton per year cracker and derivative units in Zhanjiang, southern Guangdong province.
For the first 11 months this year, China imported around 15.44 million tons of naphtha, official customs data showed, while the 2025 quota was about 24 million tons. It was not clear why the 2025 quota was not fully utilised.
Beijing is expected to release the second batch of 2026 naphtha import quotas in the middle of next year, one of the three sources said.
(Reporting by Trixie Yap, Siyi Liu and Sam Li; Editing by Florence Tan and Thomas Derpinghaus)
((trixie.yap@thomsonreuters.com;))
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